Carlos Beltran aka 'The Godfather' orchestrated Astros sign-stealing scandal: Report

“Approximately two months into the 2017 season, a group of players, including Carlos Beltran, discussed that the team could improve on decoding opposing teams’ signs and communicating the signs to the batter.” This was a small part of the MLB's statement after the Houston Astros sign-stealing controversy came to light. Ex-Houston Astros pitcher Mike Fiers was the one who set the wheels of the Houston Astros sign-stealing scandal in motion during an interview with The Athletic. Reports have now emerged that Astros veteran Carlos Beltran prompted the Houston Astros to keep up with the times when it comes to sign-stealing.

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Houston Astros sign-stealing scandal: Carlos Beltran named as the ringleader

“El Jefe”, “The Godfather”, “The King”, “The Alpha Male in the Building” were just some of the nicknames given to Carlos Beltran during his time with the Houston Astros. With nine All-Star appearances, three Golden Glove Awards, and two Silver Slugger Awards, Carlos Beltran had a career that would evoke little surprise if and when he would be inducted into the Hall of Fame. However, the only World Series to his name came in the 2017 season with the Houston Astros; a season that has come under increased scrutiny after the Astros sign-stealing controversy came to light.

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Carlos Beltran was the only Houston Astros player named in the official MLB report after the scandal. In the report by The Athletic, several players urged Beltran to put a stop to the cheating. Beltran, however, flat out refused. “He disregarded it and steamrolled everybody,” one of Carlos Beltran’s team members alleged. "Where do you go if you’re a young, impressionable player with the Astros and this guy says, ‘We’re doing this’? What do you do?"

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How did the Astros cheat?

Interestingly, back in November 2019, Carlos Beltran had an interview with a leading American news publication. In the interview, Beltran claimed that there was “nothing illegal about studying your opposite team”. Beltran then reportedly notified the publication via a text message that he was not aware of any camera being used in the scandal. Reports later emerged that the Houston Astros used an algorithm to decode signs from a video taken by a monitor stationed in centre field to steal the rival catchers’ signs and relay them to their own hitters. The report by The Athletic then opened a can of worms for the Astros.

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